Truth Vs Ideals
by neon-green-violin-27
Summary: Touko White has just begun her very own Pokémon journey. What types of Pokémon and people will she meet along the way? Find out in this twist on the classic tale of the Unova region!
1. Prologue

"Touko dear, wake up" my mom said softly while shaking my shoulder lightly.

"Just…five…more…minutes" I groggily replied, pulling the covers over my head.

"But Professor Juniper left you something. And your friends will be over soon". This piqued my interest. I hadn't made any plans with my childhood friends today, and what would the professor leave me? Reluctantly, I crawled from underneath the warmth of my covers and went to my bathroom. My mother left, announcing that breakfast would be "ready in ten". The monster of a thing I call my hair was in its usual bundles of tangles. Brushing them out was probably the most tedious part of my day. I threw it back into its usual gravity defying ponytail before brushing my teeth. After that, I washed my face and changed into my signature outfit: A white tank top covered by a sleeveless open black vest with a pair of denim short-shorts and black boots, topped off with a white and pink baseball cap. I adjusted my cap before entering my bedroom only to see two of my best friends waiting patiently in front of a nicely wrapped package.

"Touko! You're here! Let's open it up and see what's inside!" said Bianca, my energetic blonde beauty of a friend.

"You sure did take your sweet time this morning" noted Cheren, my scholarly, impatient friend. He came off as cold much of the time, while Bianca was pretty much anything but that.

"Sorry for taking so long…" I started sheepishly. "But you guys could have just opened it"

"No way! It wouldn't be fair to you!" cried Bianca.

"Can we just get to opening this already?" retorted Cheren. I strode across the room and picked up the card that lay on top.

_I've brought three Pokémon, one for you and one for each of your friends. Please settle your choices politely. Enjoy your Pokémon!_

_-Professor Juniper_

"Wow! We get our own Pokémon!" squealed Bianca.

"Now, now Bianca, it's only natural for Touko to pick first. This is her house after all" scolded Cheren. I hesitated a moment before undoing the ribbon and lifting the lid. Inside sat three pokéballs, each containing a different "starter" Pokémon.

"I choose… This one!" I proclaimed as I held my pokéball up high. It hadn't taken me long to fall in love with the little water otter.

"Hm. I see. You chose Oshawott." Noted Cheren.

"I want this one!" exclaimed Bianca.

"Hey, how come you get to choose next? Never mind, I wanted Snivy from the start, anyways" said Cheren.

"Oh! Why don't we have a battle!" said Bianca.

"I-in my room?!"

"C'mon Touko. They're only little ones. How much damage could they do?" She didn't give me any time to argue before calling out her Pokémon, forcing me to call out mine as well.

"Oshawott! Tackle!"

"Umm… uh..."

"Honestly Bianca… Tepig"

"Right! Thanks Cheren! Tepig! Use tackle too!" By then it was too late. Oshawott had already crashed into Tepig, causing him to knock over my trash can.

"You'll pay for that one Touko! Tepig! Tackle!"

"Dodge it Oshawott!" My Pokémon barely made it out of the way in time. Bianca's Tepig just spun around and charged again, this time it was a direct hit. I watched my little otter Pokémon go soaring through the air and land on my bed. It quickly stood up, messing up my bed in the process, and awaited orders.

"Oshawott! Tail whip!" I tried not to laugh as it "whipped" its little tail at Tepig. Tepig just waited idly for Bianca to call a move, which she failed to do. "All right then! Oshawott! Tackle!" I watched as Oshawott sprung off the bed and headed straight for Tepig. It tried to dodge, but it was too late. Oshawott sent Tepig flying across the room, only to have a hard landing.

"Oh! My poor Pokémon!" wailed Bianca.

"Great job Oshawott! You were great!" I praised my little sea otter.

"No way…" uttered Cheren, a look of disbelief etched on his face.

"What is it Cheren?" I asked.

"How were you able to get a critical hit?"

"A critical what?"

"A critical hit. It's when an attack does more damage than it normally would. They're really rare…" Instead of pondering over the subject any longer I took in my surroundings.

"Ah! My room!" I screamed at the sight of my completely trashed room.

"Wow Touko! I didn't know… I'm so sorry! Please forgive me!" wailed a teary-eyed Bianca as she squeezed the life out of me.

"Bianca get a grip. Besides, it's my turn to battle Touko." Scoffed Cheren. Bianca released me and Cheren healed Oshawott so it'd be a fair fight.

"Snivy! Go!" commanded Cheren.

"Oshawott! I know you can do it!" I encouraged.

"Snivy! Leer!" I watched Oshawott freeze as the grass snake gave a sinister glare.

"Oshawott! Tackle!"

"Dodge it!" And Snivy did. "Leer! Again!"

"Tackle!" This time Oshawott did hit Snivy, but it wasn't very powerful.

"Tackle!" I heard Cheren yell.

"Watch ou-" The words died in my throat as I saw my little sea otter fly across the room. For a second I thought that the match was over, and my heart almost stopped. It lifted up again once I saw Oshawott slowly begin to stand.

"No way! That should have been a knockout!" complained Cheren.

"Oshawott! Use tackle twice in a row!" The little otter did as asked, not causing much damage on the first strike, but on the second…

"No way! Not _another_ one!" Cheren exclaimed in disbelief. Snivy lay at his feet with swirls in it eyes. We both returned our Pokémon to their pokéballs before Cheren spoke again. "How is it that you get two critical hits within your first two battles?" asked Cheren. I grabbed my pink messenger bag and shrugged as we headed downstairs.

"Were you three having fun? I could hear the battles from down here" said my mom from the kitchen.

"Ms. White! I'm so, so, so sorry! The battle got out of hand and well, uh, um, you see…" stuttered Bianca.

"Touko's room is a mess" Cheren finished bluntly.

"That's an understatement" I retorted, folding my arms across my chest.

"Oh, my. Well, I guess that can't be helped. Don't worry about it, though, I'll take care of it! Head on over to the Pokémon lab to thank the professor!" said my mom. We all thanked her before exiting the house.

"Oh! I forgot something at home! Meet ya there!" said Bianca.

"Honestly… If her head wasn't attached to her body…" I heard Cheren grumble. After waiting ten minutes outside of the lab, Cheren turned to me. "Do you mind getting her?" I sighed as I began to make my way towards Bianca's house.

"No, no, a thousand times no!" I heard Bianca's dad yell upon entering their house.

"But I'm… I'm a good trainer who got a Pokémon and everything! I can totally go on an adventure!" she replied. On her way of storming out, she noticed me and pulled her hat over her head.

"Oh. It's okay. I'll be waiting in front of the lab, okay?" she addressed me before leaving the house. Her father sat down angrily on the couch while her mother came to greet me.

"Don't worry too much about him, dear. He's just very overprotective". With that, I left to rejoin my friends in front of the lab.

"Let's go and meet the professor" stated Cheren before we entered one by one. We stopped just in front of her as she addressed us.

"Hi there! I've been waiting for you three. Let me introduce myself, my name is-"

"We know your name" interrupted Cheren.

"Cheren! Don't be so rude! I'm sorry Professor Juniper!" Apologized Bianca.

"It's alright Bianca. I'm sure he's just eager to begin his journey. However, this is not a time to take things lightly, Cheren. Today is a day to remember always, so it's best to behave with some formality. That being said, once again, my name is Professor Juniper, and I am researching when and how the creatures called Pokémon came into existence" She then paced around the room, looking at each of us individually. "Oh, that's unusual! You've already had Pokémon battles? Your Pokémon already seem to trust you more. By the way, would you like to give your Pokémon nicknames?"

"OOO! I want to name my Tepig 'Little Miss Piggy!'" shrieked Bianca.

"You'll have to abbreviate that" Cheren deadpanned. "As for me, I'll keep the name Snivy. I see no reason to change it".

Bianca rolled her eyes. "Because it's fun!" she explained.

"What about you, Touko?" Professor Juniper asked me.

"I can't think of any other name I would want him to have. I like Oshawott just the way he is" I replied.

"Great! Now that that's all settled… There is a reason I gave you all Pokémon today."

"It's for the Pokédex, correct?" interrupted Cheren again.

"Pokédex? What's that?" asked Bianca.

"Nice work, Cheren. I'm impressed. You must have studied Pokémon extensively, am I right?" he gave a small nod of his head, and the smirk on his face showed that he was obviously pleased with himself. "Anyway, for everyone's sake, allow me to start from the beginning. The Pokédex is a high-tech device that automatically records information on the Pokémon you encounter! I want all three of you to visit many places and meet all of the Pokémon in the Unova region! So, this is my request: All of you, go on an adventure to complete the Pokédex!"

"Yippee! Yes! I mean… Yes Professor" said Bianca.

"Thank you very much" said Cheren.

"I'm not sure what to say… Thank you Professor!" I said.

"Thanks, all of you!" Professor Juniper said while handing us each our Pokédex. "I'll be waiting on route one to demonstrate how to catch a Pokémon." And with that, she left the lab.

"I'll meet you guys there" said Cheren, already halfway out the door.

"Wait for me! C'mon Touko, hurry!" Bianca exclaimed.

I couldn't keep a smile off of my face as I exited the lab. As soon as I got outside, I saw my mom.

"There you are Touko! What did the Professor have to say?" she asked. I told her all about the Pokédex, and the adventure I would be going on… If she would allow it. "She asked you to complete the Pokédex?! I can't believe it! Well, actually, I can. I already knew she was going to ask. That's why I brought you a town map! Oh, and here's one for Bianca and Cheren too!" she said while giving me all three maps. "Your room is still a mess, but don't worry, I'll take care of it! I can't believe something as small and cute as a Pokémon could destroy a bedroom! I'm confident you'll be safe with Oshawott by your side. Oh, and let your friends know that I've alerted their parents about their journey. Have a great trip!"

I ran up and gave her a hug before running to meet my friends. "Thanks mom" I said, with a few tears in my eyes. After the embrace, I went to the edge of town to meet my friends.


	2. Route 1

I do use quotes and actual in-game events from Pokémon White in this story.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon

* * *

><p>"Touko! It's this way!" Bianca called while waving to me.<p>

"Bianca says if we're starting a journey together, she wants us all to take our first step at the same time" said Cheren, who made no attempt to hide the annoyance on his face.

"C'mon Touko! Let's all take our first step on Route 1 together!" Bianca squealed while dragging me by the arm to stand next to her.

"Here we go…" said Cheren.

"One" Said Bianca.

"Two" Said Cheren

"Three" I said as we all sprinted forward. I didn't feel any different than before, but Bianca was clearly excited.

"Oh! I wonder what will happen! Isn't this so exciting?!"

"It sure is!" Cheren said in an overly enthusiastic tone, clearly mocking our blonde friend. "C'mon. The Professor's waiting." He quickly added in his normal tone of voice. We advanced a few steps further down Route 1 to find Professor Juniper standing in front of the tall grass. "Professor Juniper, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting." said Cheren.

"It's no problem. Now that everyone's here, I'll explain. The Pokédex's pages update automatically whenever you meet a Pokémon! Moreover, it's set up so that you obtain even more information when you catch a Pokémon! To make this clear, I'm going to demonstrate how to catch a Pokémon!". All three of us watched as she entered the tall grass. Within moments, a wild Pokémon approached her.

"Patrat, the Scout Pokémon" commented Cheren.

"Very good, Cheren! Go, Minccino!" She called upon releasing her Pokémon. "First you have to weaken the wild Pokémon to make it easier to catch. Minccino! Tackle!" We watched in silent fascination as the Professor's Minccino dealt damage to the wild Patrat. The wild Patrat retaliated with a leer attack. We watched the Minccino freeze a bit before shaking it off.

"Wow! Amazing! Minccino isn't even scared of that little guy!" exclaimed Bianca.

"That's because it's at a higher level. And because it's the Professor's Pokémon" said Cheren.

"That should do it. Now that I wore it out a bit, it's time to throw a Pokéball" Professor Juniper said while tossing out one of her own. The Patrat vanished inside of it after a flash or red light. The Pokéball shook on the ground one, two, three times before clicking. "Did you see that, just now? Let's recap: First, reduce the Pokémon's HP! Pokémon that still have a lot of energy are difficult to catch. If you can, use your Pokémon's moves to make the Pokémon you want to catch fall asleep or paralyze it! And to wrap this up in the best way, I have a gift for you—some Pokéballs!"

"Thank you Professor! The three of us said while putting them away in their respected pouch locations.

"Pokéballs are for catching Pokémon and for carrying the Pokémon you catch. I'm going on ahead. I'll be waiting for you three in Accumula Town!" She said before continuing north.

"Tch. She forgot to say that Pokémon jump out at you in the tall grass" Cheren remarked. He then turned toward me and Bianca. "I'm going to Accumula Town, too"

"I think I'll go, too!" said Bianca. "I'm looking forward to the next town so I can go shopping for more pokéballs!". She walked a few paces ahead before turning right around and grabbing onto my and Cheren's hands. "Wait a minute! Hey, listen! Touko, Cheren, I thought of something fun!"

Cheren jerked his hand back and faced forward again. "But we need to get going! I'd imagine the Professor's waiting, too."

"Would you just listen a sec? Seriously!" scolded Bianca.

"C'mon Cheren. Just give it a chance. What harm could it do?" I added in.

He gave a lengthy sigh before turning back to both of us. "Fine"

"I was going to say why don't we see who can catch the most Pokémon?" said Bianca. "The person carrying the most Pokémon, including the one we received from Professor Juniper, is the winner!"

"…Huh. Actually, that sounds interesting" admitted Cheren. He brought his hand to his chin as if he was thinking about something. "It will fill up Pokédex pages, so I'm sure it will please the Professor, too."

"Yippie!" squealed Bianca, bringing us all into a group hug.

"Ouch! Bianca!" Cheren complained. I just laughed along with Bianca. Once she released us, Cheren fixed his glasses and straightened his jacket. "Ok, then. Until we reach Accumula Town, take care of healing your Pokémon at your own houses"

"Me and Lil' Ms. Piggy will do the best for sure!" declared Bianca. With that, she charged straight into the tall grass.

"Hey! Wait for me!" called Cheren running after her, leaving me all alone. I stared down at the pokéball in my hands before taking a deep breath and taking a few steps forward so I was just inside the first row of tall grass. I was going to take another step when a Pokémon ran across, scaring the crap out of me. I gave a short scream in surprise and fell backwards onto my butt. The Pokémon I had almost stepped on approached me and cocked its head to the side. I stared at the little creature before pulling out my Pokédex.

"How do I work this thing…?" I mumbled trying to get it open. After tapping the screen a few times, another screen appeared from the back. Both screens lit up. I sat up and pointed the Pokédex at the Pokémon. After a few seconds, the Pokémon's information showed up.

_Lillipup. The Puppy Pokémon. It faces strong opponents with great courage. But, when at a disadvantage in a fight, this intelligent Pokémon flees. The long hair around its face provides an amazing radar that lets it sense subtle changes in its surroundings._

"Hi little guy." I cooed. Would you like to join me?" I asked while holding out a pokéball. The instant it saw the ball it began to back away. "Wait! Come back! I'm sorry!" I cried out to it. I looked around and saw some berries on a bush. "Would you like some berries?" I asked. It stayed put, watching carefully as I gathered some berries in the palm of my hand. I laid them down in a line one by one in front of it, leading it to me. It cautiously approached the first berry, sniffed it, and then ate it. It yipped after eating it, which as I took as a good sign, and began moving on to the next berry. One by one the little Pokémon got closer to me. I had the rest of the berries in the palm of my hand and patiently waited for the little Pokémon to come to me. It stopped right in front of me, and watched me carefully. I stayed still as it approached my hands and began eating. Once I could hold all of the berries in one hand, I moved the other slowly towards it. I made sure it could see what I was doing so that I didn't scare it off. I gently began petting the little dog Pokémon. It didn't shy away, so I reached with my other hand to pick it up. I must have moved too suddenly, because the little Pokémon bit my right hand.

"Ah!" I cried in surprise, but didn't back away. The little Pokémon looked at me still gripping my hand. I stared back and apologized. "Sorry little guy. It's my fault. I'm the one that scared you". The puppy Pokémon released my hand and came forward. It licked the small puncture it had made on my hand and yipped, as if apologizing. I smiled "It's okay.". The puppy yipped again then hit the stray pokéball I had left on the ground. I watched as it was engulfed into the ball by the same red light as the Professor's Patrat. It shook one, two, three times before softly clicking. I immediately grabbed for the ball and called the little Pokémon out. "You want to come with me?" I asked for clarification. It yipped and jumped into my lap. I giggled and picked up the Pokémon, swirling it around in the air. "Let's show you to Mom!" I told it. Mom could wrap my bite and determine if it was a boy or a girl. I carried the tiny Pokémon back to my house.

"Touko? Is that you? You're home already?"

"Hi Mom! I need a bite wrapped" I answered.

"A bite? From what?"

"This little guy! I declared, holding my Lillipup out to her. "It was an accident. We're going to be good friends!"

"That's great sweetie!" Mom said.

"Oh! One more thing… Can you tell me if it's a boy or a girl?"

"Let me see." She said while taking Lillipup from me. After giving it a once-over, she declared "It's a boy!"

"Thanks Mom!" I said as she wrapped my hand. I gave her a quick hug before running back to Route 1. I stepped through the first patch of grass and wasn't engaged by any other wild Pokémon. I stepped in the next patch of grass and saw a young woman. I talked to her and she gave me a free sample of Potion. A Patrat approached just as I was exiting the tall grass.

"Lillipup! Go!" I said as I called him out. "Use tackle!" Lillipup moved first, being faster than the opposing Patrat and landed a direct hit. "Nice job now pokéball go-". My command was cut off short when the Patrat retaliated with a tackle of its own. I watched my puppy Pokémon skid back a few feet in pain. I felt my anger begin to stir. "Hey! Take this!" I yelled at the Patrat while throwing a pokéball at it. It caught after shaking three times. "Hm. That'll teach you…" I grumbled at the Patrat's pokéball. I recalled Lillipup back to its pokéball after apologizing to it. Then I quickly returned home and let my Pokémon rest.

"It looks like you're all set, dear" Said Mom.

"Thanks… Battling is sure harder than I thought…"

"Don't give up dear! I'm sure you'll get the hang of it soon!" she reassured. Once again I thanked her before returning to Route 1. I called out all three Pokémon. I noticed that the only thing preventing Patrat from running away was the glares from my two other Pokémon.

"Alright guys, I think we need to train for a little bit to toughen you guys up. I don't want another close call, like with Lillipup. I promise I will pay complete attention to every battle from now on." I said.

"Oshawott! You first!" I said, recalling the other two Pokémon to their pokéballs. Together we walked through every patch of tall grass we could find. We battled many wild Pokémon, mostly Patrats, and defeated them all. Oshawott even learned water gun! However, he started to tire after about an hour and a half of training, so I moved on to Lillipup. Lillipup had a harder time in the beginning, seeing as it was a lower level than Oshawott, but once he learned bite he caught up pretty quick. Once he was about as tired as Oshawott I called him back too. Now all I had left was Patrat. I grimaced a bit at the thought of that Pokémon, but he was mine now after all.

"Patrat! Come on out!". I had realized that I hadn't even checked my Pokédex for any information on him. I quickly pulled out my Pokédex, only to have it be gone. "Patrat? Patrat!?" I called out. I looked through nearby bushes, along the path. I did a double take as I saw a flash of something pop up from the ground. "GOTCHA! I said while leaping towards the Pokémon. I caught it, only to reveal that it wasn't my Patrat at all. "Hehe. Sorry." I said while placing the Pokémon down. I didn't like the look it was giving me. I stood up while maintaining eye contact with it and began to worry. What if it attacked? My other Pokémon were too worn out to battle. I backed up very slowly, careful not to make any noise. I sighed in relief until I heard a SNAP! I looked down to see a broken twig under my foot. I looked back at the wild Patrat who had just started charging me. I stood frozen waiting for the wild Pokémon to attack me. I pointed my Pokédex at it and shut my eyes tight, as if those actions alone would protect me.

_Patrat. The Scout Pokémon. Extremely cautious, they take shifts to maintain a constant watch of their nest. They feel insecure without a lookout._

"It must have been protecting its nest" I thought. I opened my eyes in time to see another Pokémon tackle the wild Patrat from the side. I recognized the second Patrat as my own. Why would it help me? We clearly didn't like or trust each other. But the little rodent fought for me… Or not. I tried giving out commands, but the Scout Pokémon would just ignore them anyway. After my Patrat had proven to be victorious, I realized that all it wanted were the berries hidden in the wild Patrat's nest.

"Put those back!" I yelled at my Pokémon. "That is stealing! No Pokémon of mine is going to be a thief! Put them back now!" Patrat switched its focus between me and the berries. It stuffed a bunch in its mouth before scurrying away. I raced after it and quickly caught up to the Pokémon. I put it back in its pokéball. "That's it mister. You just earned yourself a time out!" I yelled at the pokéball before shoving it in my bag. I then continued to walk on Route 1. I soon saw a floppy bright green hat just past a last patch of grass. I quickly ran through, not wanting to encounter anymore wild Pokémon.

"Oh! Touko!" said Bianca.

"What took so long?" asked Cheren.

"Some last minute training" I replied slightly out of breath.

"Let's compare to see which one of us has the most Pokémon! Cheren and I both have two!"

"I have three" I said casually.

"Wow, Touko! You win! You're amazing!"

"Calm down Bianca… It's nothing really… One of them doesn't even like me, and I got bitten while trying to catch one, see?" I said while showing off my bandaged hand.

"You do know that your Pokémon are supposed to battle, right? Not you." Cheren said sarcastically with a smirk. I glared at him, but didn't say anything. I didn't have the energy to fight him right now. "C'mon. The Professor's waiting". We were all about to head into town when all of our Xtransceivers started ringing.

"Hello! How is everybody doing? You and your Pokémon are getting along great now, right?" said Professor Juniper.

"Oh! Professor!" exclaimed Bianca.

"Right now, I'm in front of Accumula Town's Pokémon Center! I'd like to show you around, so hurry on over, everyone!"

"Okay! The Pokémon Center, right?" asked Bianca.

"Honestly…" complained Cheren.

"See you there!" I said before hanging up.

"I'm going on ahead" said Cheren.

"Me too!" said Bianca. I watched them both leave me again before slowly strolling after them. I spotted Professor Juniper alone in front of what I guessed was the Pokémon Center.


	3. Accumula Town & Route 2

I do use quotes and actual in-game events from Pokémon White in this story.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon

* * *

><p>"Touko! There you are! Cheren and Bianca were already here, so it's just you and me. Traveling with your Pokémon is truly one of the joys of being a Trainer! Please follow me." Professor Juniper said before entering the strange orange-roofed building. I quickly followed after her. "This is the most important place for any Trainer to know. Over here we have Nurse Joy who will heal your Pokémon to perfect health for free. Next we have the PC which is used to store Pokémon. Remember, you can only carry six with you at a time. You can use this machine to switch out Pokémon as well. Finally, we have the Pokémon shop center. You can buy useful items here, like pokéballs and potions."<p>

"Excuse me miss, can I please use the counter- Oh! Touko! It's you!" said Bianca. "Isn't this place amazing?! I can't wait to buy more things!"

"Well, that about sums up our tour. Good luck ladies!" Professor Juniper said.

"Bye Professor! Thank you!" Both Bianca and I called after her. Bianca retuned to shopping while I went to go get my Pokémon healed. I bought a few more potions and stuff while waiting. Soon I was called over and my Pokémon were returned to me. I stepped outside of the Pokémon Center to find a crowd of people. I spotted a familiar blue-haired boy and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Touko, stay here a sec" he said.

"What's this about Cheren?"

"I'm not sure… but I don't like it" he replied. We waited patiently as a man with colorful robes walked to and fro speaking of 'Pokémon Liberation'. He had green hair, and one red eye. He spoke rather harshly as well, making his speech hard to follow. Not to mention there were a bunch of oddly dressed men and women surrounding him. Once he finished speaking, him and his subordinates gathered up there flags and left. Everyone was left confused, but returned to their normal activities.

"Pokémon Liberation?" I said aloud. I looked down at the three pokéballs at my side.

"What a bunch of bull…" said Cheren.

"Your Pokémon…" said a stranger in while approaching us. He had a black and white hat on, green hair, khaki looking pants, and a white shirt over a turtleneck. There was also an odd cube object hanging from one of his belt loops. "Just now it was saying…"

"Slow down. You talk too fast" Interrupted Cheren. "And what's this about Pokémon… talking? That's an odd thing to say"

"Yes, they're talking." The stranger said completely serious. His face lit up in realization for a moment. "Oh. Then, you two can't hear it either… How sad." He paused a moment before continuing. "My name is N"

"My name is Cheren, and this is Touko" Cheren said motioning to me. "We were asked to complete the Pokédex, and we just left on our journey. My main goal is to become the Champion, though."

"The Pokédex… So… you're going to confine many, many Pokémon in pokéballs for that then. I'm a Trainer, too, but I can't help wondering… Are Pokémon really happy that way?"

"Happy?" said Cheren, confused. N nodded his head, and then approached me.

"Well, Touko, is it? Let me hear your Pokémon's voice again!"

"I- what?" was all I was able to say before he engaged me in a Pokémon battle. I quickly grabbed one of my pokéballs and threw out the Pokémon that lay inside. To my dismay, it was my Patrat. N threw out a cat-like Pokémon that I had never seen before. "One second, please!" I said while pulling out my Pokédex. I pointed it at the purple Pokémon.

_Purrloin. The Devious Pokémon. Its cute act is a ruse. When victims let down their guard, they find their items taken. It attacks with sharp claws._

I quickly put it away before returning my attention to the battle.

"Ladies first" N said.

"Thanks…" I said. I felt my face get a little hot. I shook my head before telling Patrat "Patrat! Tackle!". I watched in horror as the little rodent sat there, clearly ignoring me. "Patrat! Tackle!" I repeated.

"He heard you the first time. He just doesn't wish to listen to you" said N. "Now then, Purrloin, friend, Tackle!". N's purloin moved surprisingly fast towards my Pokémon. It hit Patrat head on, making the Scout Pokémon go flying back towards me.

"Skree!" it cried in pain.

"Patrat!" I called rushing to its side. It had swirls in its eyed. I knew I should have tried harder to train with him. "Return. Go Oshawott!" I called as I sent out my little water otter.

"Osha, Osha wott!" he said.

"That's strange… This Pokémon's attitude towards you is very different…"

"Um… Excuse me, N?"

"Sorry. Please, continue". With his blessing I commanded Oshawott to use Water gun. N's Purrloin dodged it flawlessly. "Purrloin! Tackle!"

"Dodge it!" I cried. Oshawott had barely moved out of the way in time, despite him being at a higher level. "Now! Water gun from behind!" I commanded. Oshawott shot water straight at the Purrloin's back. The Purrloin slowly began to rise, but fell soon after, swirls in its eyes.

"Again?!" cried Cheren in disbelief. I had completely forgotten that he was still here.

"What?" I asked my childhood friend.

"Critical. Hit." Was all he said.

"I never expected to hear Pokémon say such things…"

"What things?" I asked. I wished I could understand them like him. Maybe then I could understand Patrat… N just shook his head.

"As long as Pokémon are confined in pokéballs... Pokémon will never become perfect beings. I have to change the world for Pokémon, because they're my friends!" N said before walking away.

"Wait!" I called after him. He must not have heard me because he kept on walking. I wanted to ask him what my Pokémon said about me…

"Huh… Strange guy" said Cheren.

"Huh?" I asked. "Sorry I zoned out…"

He sighed. "Nothing. I'm not going to worry about what he said though. Trainers and Pokémon help each other out! Listen, I'm going on ahead. I want to battle the Gym Leader in the next town—Striation City. Aim to battle Gym Leader after Gym Leader. That's the best way to become stronger." He said before leaving. I watched him leave before heading over to The Pokémon Center to heal my Pokémon again. Thoughts of what the boy N had said earlier crept into my mind while waiting.

_He looked older, about two years at the most. Not to mention he was very polite. He seemed to agree with what the older man had been saying earlier about Pokémon Liberation. Still, where had he even come from? And why did he choose to battle me? It's not every day that an attractive young male challenges you to a Pokémon battle in the street… Wait. Did I just admit to him being attractive?_

My face instantly heated up as I mentally scolded myself.

"Miss Touko?" Nurse Joy said. Apparently she had been calling to me for at least a solid three minutes. I took my Pokémon back and thanked her, rushing out of the Pokémon Center before I could embarrass myself any further. I followed the direction I had seen Cheren head for. He was way better with directions than I was. I walked through the doors of the first gate I had seen. A person dressed in blue sat behind the counter. To my right was a giant electric bulletin board mounted on the wall. There were also a few chairs and a garbage can. I had no reason to stop, so I just quickly walked through. On the other side of the gate I was met with a bunch of trees. I walked a few more steps until my Xtransceiver started ringing.

"Touko! It's your mom! How are things? Are you and your Pokémon enjoying your journey so far?"

"Hi Mom! I'm fine! My Pokémon and I are all well!" I said before she could ask any more questions.

"Good! I needed to talk to you, but I'm going to hang up the Xtransceiver now."

"Wait! Why are you-" _Click_. She had hung up. "-hanging up…?"

"Touko?" My Mom said from right behind me. "I've finally caught up to you. And look how far you've come already! Professor Juniper said that you were probably headed for Striation City by now." She held out a bag to me. "Touko, I have another present! Try these on!" I reached inside of the bag and pulled out a pair of brand new running shoes. I tried them on and they fit me like a glove. "Now you'll be able to run safely anywhere, without hurting your feet! I bought them a while ago, but I hid them somewhere and I couldn't remember where. I found them while cleaning up the house today."

"Thanks Mom!"

"You're welcome, dear. Now remember, you're never alone. You will always have your Pokémon, your friends, and of course I'll always be thinking about you. Enjoy your trip!" she said before leaving.

I put my boots in my bag and began to walk around in my new shoes. I was going to go into the tall grass before a girl stopped me.

"How about we have a battle?" she asked.

"Sure" I replied. I walked a good distance away and stood across from her, holding onto Oshawott's pokéball.

"Go Patrat!"

"Oshawott!"

"Use Tackle!" we both said at the same time. They hit head on, first resulting in a stalemate, until Oshawott overpowered the rodent and sent it flying towards its trainer. It got back up and patiently awaited its Trainer's orders. I couldn't help but feel a little jealous of that girl and her Patrat. How had they gotten along so well? My only experiences with Patrat had been unpleasant, to say the least. I was shaken from my thoughts when I saw my little otter Pokémon dodge a tackle attack. I was still battling, no time to think about other things.

"Oshawott! Finish it with Tackle!" I commanded. The little water otter did as asked and landed a successful hit. The girl's Patrat ended up with swirled eyes. "Oshawott, great job! Return!"

"Thanks for the battle! You did really well!" said the girl.

"Thanks. You too!" I called back to her. I had stepped into a new section of tall grass. I felt it graze my ankles, which was a weird sensation that I hadn't felt in a long time because of the boots I always wore. I ran through the grass, stopping at the edge when a Pokémon had caught my eye. It was a Purrloin.

"Lillipup! Go! Use Tackle!" The puppy Pokémon did as told, hitting the wild Purrloin. This one was almost as quick as N's. I blushed at the thought of him, remembering what I thought about earlier. I shook my head and threw an empty pokéball. It shook one, two, three times before opening.

"Shoot. Damnit N!" I muttered under my breath. My lack of focus this entire battle was throwing me off. "Bite!" I commanded. Lillipup bit the tail of the Purrloin, but it didn't do much damage. I checked my Pokédex. Bite was a Dark type move, and Purrloin was a Dark type Pokémon. Regardless, I threw another pokéball at it. It caught this time, making me extremely relieved. I picked up Purrloin's pokéball and walked out of the grass. I battled a few more trainers and wild Pokémon the rest of the route. All of my Pokémon had gained levels, even Patrat. We still weren't on good terms, but I think we were making progress. I also learned about ledge jumping from a guy. It was getting pretty dark though, so I used my Purrloin to help guide me to Striation City. I put my Purrloin away once we entered the city and headed straight for the Pokémon Center. I healed my Pokémon and bought a few more items before turning in for the night.


	4. Striation City

I do use quotes and actual in-game events from Pokémon White in this story.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon

* * *

><p>I woke up early the next morning to get some extra training in. Today I would be working more with Patrat, and more on trying to get it to like me. I had it battling other Pokémon all morning. We were just about to head back into town when<p>

"Ohhhhh! Hi Touko!" said Bianca cheerfully. "Hey, listen! Let's have a Pokémon battle!"

"I don't know Bianca… I'm really tired and…"

"Pleeeeease? The Pokémon I caught have become a little stronger!"

"Bianca…"

"Ready or not, here I come!" she declared. Reluctantly, I called out a Pokémon.

"Purrloin! Use Fury Swipes!"

"Lillipup! Bite!" I smirked at her move choice. Not only was my Purrloin stronger and faster, but I knew firsthand that using bite on Purrloin wouldn't be very effective. I didn't bother telling Purrloin to dodge. She did it on her own. Then she attacked with fury swipes. After four repeated assaults her Lillipup went down.

"Great job Purrloin!" I said as I called it back.

"Hey! You'll pay for that one!" cried Bianca. "Go! Lil' Ms. Piggy!

I knew it was risky, but… "Go! Patrat!"

"Use Ember!"

"Use Bide!"

I watched as my Scout Pokémon took the flames being sent its way. It cried out in pain, but stood still.

_Another hit like that, and Patrat could be a goner… _I thought.

"Patrat retur-"

"Ember!" I watched as flames once again engulfed my little Pokémon. It fell to the ground, and I thought the battle was over for it. I was about to return it when it unleashed a series of attacks on Bianca's Tepig with angry glowing eyes. I couldn't believe how fast it could move. After assaulting the Tepig, who had fainted only after one of the last few hits, my own Pokémon fell on the ground with swirls in its eyes.

"Thanks Patrat" I said softly while returning it to its pokéball.

"Woo-hoo! You sure are a tough cookie, Touko! I'm gonna work hard on training my Pokémon so we won't lose anymore!"

"Thanks Bianca. Good luck!"

"Ok! Bye, bye!" said my ditsy blonde friend while heading into town. The sun was starting to come up, so I decided it'd be best to let my Pokémon rest before challenging the gym. After getting them back from Nurse Joy, I called out Patrat. I lowered myself to a crouch so that it was on his level.

"Hey, Patrat. I just wanted to thank you for all the hard work you've been doing. Look! I have a surprise for you!" I said while pulling out some berries. He perked up and sniffed them. I smiled and waited for him to take them. Instead, he slapped my hands with his tail, causing the berries to fly everywhere. "Why you… Get back in there!" I said angrily while putting him back in his pokéball. I exited the Pokémon Center as casually as I could after that, even playing dumb when people asked why berries were all over the floor. I walked to the right for a while until I saw a big building with a sign that read:

_Trainers' School_

_Brush up on Pokémon knowledge!_

It couldn't hurt to learn some new things. Besides, maybe someone in there would know some useful things about the Gym Leader of this town. I walked into the school and spotted a familiar blue-haired boy at the back of the room. He was standing in front of a blackboard. As I got closer I heard him say:

"When a Pokémon is poisoned, its HP decreases while it's battling."

"Hey, Cheren" I greeted.

"Hey, Touko. Have you come looking for the Gym Leader?"

"How'd you know?"

"I thought it'd be the first thing you'd do. Anyway, you just missed him. He was here a few minutes ago talking about Pokémon types. Maybe you walked right past him… By the way, will you have a battle with me? I want to test how important items are in battle."

"Sure. Whenever you're ready"

"Snivy! Go!"

"Oshawott! Tackle!"

"Dodge it!". Too late. Oshawott hit Snivy with ease. Snivy got up immediately and used vine whip. I hadn't even heard Cheren say to.

"Tackle it again!" I commanded. Oshawott charged the grass snake, dealing a ton of damage, but not enough to faint it. Instead of attacking right away, I watched as Snivy had eaten the berry that it had been holding. It instantly regained some strength and energy and came charging at  
>Oshawott with another vine whip attack. "Dodge it! Then water gun!" Oshawott obeyed without hesitation, shooting Snivy right in the face with a blast of water. However, Snivy still stood.<p>

"Tackle now!" both Cheren and I called to our Pokémon. They hit head on, creating a stalemate. Soon enough, both Pokémon gave out, swirls in both of their eyes.

I recalled Oshawott. "Good job. Now! Lillipup!"

"Purrloin!"

"Use Tackle!"

"Scratch!". Lillipup had successfully tackled Purrloin, but Purrloin had also scratched Lillipup in the process. Both Pokémon stood up, ready to go at it again.

"Leer then Tackle!" I called. Lillipup's leer wasn't very successful, but it did allow Lillipup to get close enough to do some real damage. Cheren's Purrloin hit the opposite wall before falling to the ground with swirls in its eye. "Great job!" I told my Pokémon upon returning it.

Cheren had his hand on his chin again. "So learning to use items well is definitely important, then. Here, Touko. Take some of these berries" I held my hands out to receive the berries right before my Patrat escaped from its pokéball. It greedily ate all of the berries while I looked for its pokéball.

"Return!"

"You really need to learn how to control that thing. Anyway, Pokémon can eat berries like those to regain health. They can't use man-made items like potions though. They don't know how to use them. Good luck battling the Gym Leader!". I thanked him before returning to the Pokémon Center. I bought more items while my Pokémon healed. I thanked Nurse Joy again before taking a deep breath and exiting the Pokémon Center. I headed left this time until I saw a sign that read:

_Striation City - Three Stand Together as One!_

"Three? I thought this gym only had one Leader…" I entered the Gym anyway, slightly more nervous than before.

A man with white hair and dark glasses approached me as soon as I entered the gym. "Hi! I'm Clyde. I'm the guide for Trainers challenging a Pokémon Gym. We appreciate you challenging the Gym. Take this to commemorate the occasion" he said while handing me a water bottle.

"Thank you!" I said while putting it away in my bag. I then stood in front of a red curtain with a flame pattern on it. In between me and the curtain lay three different colored circles on the floor: A blue one, with a water drop symbol. A green one, with a leaf symbol. And a red one, with a fire symbol that matched the one on the curtain.

_Hmm… If it goes by strengths, water is strong against fire... but if it goes by weaknesses, grass would be the one I should press on… Then again, my starter is a water type… let's go with Water then!_

I stepped forward onto the blue circle. Relied poured out of me as it began to glow, and the curtain began to open. So… It goes by strengths. I walked through the curtain to have a young waiter approach me. He challenged me to a battle, which I had no choice but to accept. I beat his Lillipup with ease, which led me to stand in front of the next curtain. This one was blue with a water symbol on it. I quickly stood on the green circle and waited for the curtain to open. After walking through, I was challenged by a waitress who had a Patrat and a Purrloin. I defeated both of those Pokémon too, before standing in front of another curtain. This one was green with a leaf symbol. I stepped on the fire circle and waited. Once the curtain opened, I climbed a flight of stairs to see a boy with green hair standing before me.

"Welcome to the Striation City Pokémon Gym" he said.

"I'm Chili! I light things up with Fire-type Pokémon!" said another boy coming from behind the first. He had fiery red hair that somewhat resembled a flame.

"I'm a Water-type specialist, and my name is Cress. Pleased to make your acquaintance." said another boy with blue hair who also came from behind the first. His hair reminded me of a waterfall.

"And my name is Cilan. I like Grass-type Pokémon." said the first boy. "Um, you see… As for why all three of us, um, are all here is, well, er…"

"Oh enough! Listen up! The three of us will decide whom you'll battle!" said the second boy, the one with the red hair. "It'll be based on the type of the first Pokémon you chose!"

"That is indeed the case." Said the blue-haired boy. "And the partner you first chose was Water type, it seems."

"So, um, if you're OK with me, I'll, um, put everything I've got into being, er, you know, your opponent." Cilan said before each of us tossed out our Pokémon. He sent out a Lillipup first, and so did I.

"Lillipup! Bite!" I commanded.

"Tackle!"

My Lillipup waited until Cilan's got very close to it before dodging its tackle attack and biting the back of its neck. Cilan's Pokémon yelped in pain while trying to shake Lillipup off of it. Lillipup was thrown against the wall when it let go due to Cilan's Pokémon's thrashing, but got back up.

"Tackle!" both of use ordered. Both Pokémon kept dodging each other's tackles, then sending their own, creating a never ending cycle.

"Bite once you're close enough!" I called to my Lillipup. It did as told, fainting the other puppy Pokémon.

"Go! Pansage"

"May I?" I asked holding out my Pokédex.

"Uh, um sure…" replied Cilan. I quickly aimed my Pokédex towards the green monkey.

_Pansage. The Grass Monkey Pokémon. This Pokémon dwells deep in the forest. Eating a leaf from its head whisks weariness away as if by magic.__It shares the leaf on its head with weary-looking Pokémon. These leaves are also known to relieve stress._

"Thanks. Lillipup! Tackle!"

"Pansage! Vine whip!"

Before Lillipup could even get close to Pansage, Pansage gripped it with one vine while hitting it with the other. This attack continued until Lillipup fainted.

"Return! Go Purrlo-" I cried before Patrat came out. "Patrat! Return!" I said while trying to send the rodent Pokémon back into its pokéball.

"Um… Miss…. Our, umm, battle?" I heard Cilan say.

"Fine, you can battle… Go and use Bide!" I commanded. Patrat ignored me once again and decided that tackle would be much more effective. I didn't have and time to warn him before he too was caught in Pansage's vines. "Use Bide!" I yelled from across the room.

"Skree!" The Scout Pokémon cried in pain. It too succumbed to becoming unconscious after a few repeated assaults. I walked onto the battlefield and picked Patrat up. I laid it down next to my bag instead of putting it inside its pokéball.

"Oshawott! Go!"

"Vine whip!"

"Watch those vines and use tackle!" I warned. Oshawott did its best do avoid the vines, but couldn't get close enough to tackle it. "Use your shell to cut the vines!" Oshawott grabbed the shell from its chest and began slashing away at vines. Once he got close enough, he delivered a tackle that sent the Grass Monkey flying.

"Pansage! Potion!" I watched as Cilan's Pansage ran to his side so he could apply the medicine.

"Oshawott! Do the same thing again! This time, use your shell on the Pansage before tackling it!"

Oshawott repeated what it had previously done, but Pansage was ready. He sent more vines, and made Oshawott work harder to cut those. I saw that it was wearing Oshawott out, but there were too many vines for me to recall him. I watched Oshawott get tangled in a knot of vines. He fought hard, but it didn't look like he was going to make it. I had my hand on his pokéball, ready to recall him, when he started to glow. Oshawott then doubled in size, and one shell became two.

"He's…" said Cilan.

"Evolving" I finished. I watched as Oshawott evolved and gained a new sense of determination, slashing twice as fast at the vines with both shells. He was freed from his plant prison in no time and rushed Pansage. He slashed away at the Grass monkey with his shells until the Pansage fell, swirls in its eyes. I stood in disbelief and amazement at my little water otter.

"… What a surprise… You are very strong. Seems like not even Chili or Cress could beat you… Congratulations on the battle. And on your Oshawott evolving." said Cilan while handing me a badge. It had three diagonal rectangular sections stacked on top of one another, each a different color in the middle. I put it in the first slot of my badge case and admired it a moment. "Gym Badges are proof of a Trainer's abilities. Badges earn you respect from not only Pokémon, but Pokémon trainers as well." Cilan explained.

"We also want you to have this" Cress added while handing me a small disk. It was labeled TM83. "TM83 contains Work Up. Work up increases a Pokémon's attack and special attack when used."

"By the way, TMs can be used as many times as you want" noted Chili.

"In the Unova region, we are still novice Gym Leaders. Which means that other Gym Leaders are much stronger than we are. We'll need to work hard and improve" Cilan said.

"Thank you all so much! I promise I'll come back one day and try your food!" I said while walking down the stairs. I headed to the Pokémon Center to heal my Pokémon again. I took out my new badge while waiting. The first colored section was blue, like Oshawott. The next was red, like that strange man's eye. The third one was green, just like…

"Miss Touko! Your Pokémon are fully healed!" said Nurse Joy. I quickly received them and thanked her before exiting the Pokémon Center. As soon as I walked out of the door I was approached by a woman with long dark hair who was wearing a lab coat.


	5. The Dreamyard & Team Plasma

I do use quotes and actual in-game events from Pokémon White in this story.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon

* * *

><p>"Hi there! I'm Fennel. Professor Juniper asked me to give you something." The woman in the lab coat said.<p>

"Nice to meet you! I'm Touko." I said with a smile.

"The item in question is at my house. Please follow me" she said. I did as told, making light conversation on the way.

"So how do you know Professor Juniper?" I inquired.

"We went to the same college. Actually, we were roommates!" she said cheerily. "So, you're going to meet all of the Pokémon in the Unova region, right?"

"That's the plan" I replied as we entered a large building. It was built higher than it was wider.

"It's right up these stairs" Fennel explained. I followed her upstairs to a spacious area half taken up by furniture, the other half taken up by strange machinery that I had never seen before. "As you can see, I'm a scientist. I'm currently studying Trainers"

"Trainers?"

"Yes. Oh, but first, Professor Juniper asked me to help you guys out, so, here is the Hidden Machine 01. Or HM01 for short. Like TMs, HMs can be reused. HM01 has the move Cut. Teach it to a Pokémon to cut down small shrubbery that you can't get around." She said handing me a disk similar to the TM that Cress gave me. "Oh, another thing! Moves like Cut can be used inside or outside of battle. However, you need a certain number of Gym Badges before you can use some of the HMs outside of battle. I'm sure you'll figure it out soon enough. Now then, can I ask a favor of you in return?"

"Sure!"

"There is a place on the outskirts of Striation City called the Dreamyard. It's located just east of here. I'd like some of the Dream Mist that a Pokémon there called Munna gives off. With that, I'll be able to sync the dreams of various Trainers together. Please bring me some Dream Mist!"

"I'll try my best!" I said before exiting the house. I walked past the Gym to see a pathway leading to the west. I followed it and found myself standing outside the ruins of a building. I stumbled over some rubble as I navigated towards a gaping hole in part of the wall. I saw once I got closer that I wouldn't be able to squeeze through the hole due to a small tree that was in the way.

_This must be the kind of tree that I would use cut on_ I thought while pulling out the HM.

"Patrat! Help me out!" I called releasing it from its pokéball. "How would you like to learn a new move?"

"Skree!"

"I'll take that as a yes" I gave Patrat the HM and watched as it began to use its teeth to gnaw on the roots. After about ten minutes, the small tree fell over, allowing me entry further into the Dreamyard. "Thanks" I said to my Pokémon while returning it. I stepped through the hole when I heard my name being called.

"Hi Touko! Are you looking for the mysterious Pokémon, too?"

"Yeah. I'm actually helping one of the Professor's friends out with a project"

"Oh! I heard that this Pokémon can show a person's dreams! I wonder how it works…" we continued walking towards the front door that lay open when we heard a terrifying screech. "Did you hear that?"

I nodded my head once in confirmation "Let's go check it out". We ran through the front door into an area with no roof. In front of us was a small pink Pokémon that floated in the air. I reached for my Pokédex and scanned the Pokémon.

_Munna. The Dream Eater Pokémon. It eats the dreams of people and Pokémon.__People whose dreams are eaten by them forget what the dreams had been about. When it eats a pleasant dream, it expels pink-colored mist._

"So this is Munna…" I thought aloud. It moved away from us, as if afraid we would hurt it.

"Oh! Wait!" cried Bianca chasing after it. I followed her lead, and we eventually caught up to the little guy. As I was coming to stand beside Bianca, two people wearing strange uniforms like the people from Accumula Town emerged from behind a corner.

"We found you, Munna!" the woman on the right said. They surrounded the Pokémon on either side.

"Come on! Come on! Make some dream mist!" The other person said. It was a man, and he gave the pink Pokémon a kick that made it cry out in pain.

"Who are you?!" cried Bianca, upset from witnessing Pokémon abuse. I stood frozen in my spot with wide eyes, unable to move. "What are you doing?" I heard Bianca say.

"Are you talking about us? We're team Plasma" said the man. "We battle day and night to liberate Pokémon from foolish humans!"

"What are we doing?" said the woman. "The Pokémon Munna and Musharna emit a mysterious vapor called Dream Mist, which show's people's dreams. We're going to use that to make people want to release their Pokémon! We'll show them dreams to manipulate their hearts." The man gave the pink Pokémon another kick, harder this time.

"…Mu… nna…" It cried wearily.

"Come on! Spit out that Dream Mist!" the man said angrily.

"You're kicking a Pokémon to make it give off Dream Mist? That's mean! Why? You're Trainers too, right?"

"That's right. We're Pokémon Trainers too, but we're fighting for a different reason" said the woman. "Unlike you, we're fighting for the freedom of Pokémon!"

"And setting Pokémon free means that we win Pokémon battles and take Pokémon by force!" added the man. I felt as though I had just been jerked out of a dream at the man's last sentence. I narrowed my eyes and stepped forward.

"You speak of Pokémon liberation, yet you would harm a Pokémon to achieve that goal? What kind of hypocrisy is that?!" I raged. "If you say one more word or hurt that Munna again you're going to _seriously_ regret it." I threatened, my voice as cold as ice.

"Big talk coming from such a young girl. How about I rescue your Pokémon from you right now?" the man said while tossing a pokéball out. Out popped a Patrat. I threw out my own Patrat.

"Touko! Be careful!" Bianca cried.

"Patrat! Bite!" I commanded. Whether the Scout Pokémon knew the severity of the situation or not, it obeyed without hesitation. It latched onto the Team Plasma member's Patrat and continually gnawed until the other Pokémon had swirls in its eyes.

"Tch…" the man said while recalling his Pokémon.

"Were you not taking them seriously because they're kids?" Yelled the woman. "Well, whatever! I'm next!" she said while throwing out a pokéball of her own. She threw out a Purrloin, while I kept Patrat in battle.

"Purrloin! You know what to do!" the female member commanded. Without hesitation, the Purrloin leaped at my Patrat, slashing away with its claws and fangs.

"Patrat!" I cried as I saw blood begin to spill from my Patrat. I ran onto the battlefield and shielded my Patrat with my body. The Purrloin paused for a moment and turned to its Trainer.

"What are you doing?! Keep attacking!" the woman called.

"AH!" I cried out in pain as the Purrloin began to attack me. I felt it all, every scratch and bite. It made me wonder how Pokémon could withstand all of this, and happily fight alongside us. I looked up, and then quickly put my head back down as I saw the Purrloin reach for my face. I waited a few more seconds before standing up, grabbing the Purrloin from my back and throwing it to the ground. I returned Patrat to its pokéball before calling out my Lillipup.

"Tackle until it faints!" I cried. My Lillipup did as told, assaulting the purple cat Pokémon until it stayed down. It then stood before the Plasma members and growled.

"…I can't believe we lost!" said the man. "But we have to obtain the dream mist!" he added before walking over and kicking the wild Munna again. "Come on! Make with the Dream Mist!"

"Knock it off!" Bianca screamed. Just then, the man with green hair and one red eye appeared to the left of us.

"What are you two doing goofing off?" he said harshly. Then, another version of the same man appeared to our right.

"We, Team Plasma, shall separate Pokémon from foolish people!" said the second version of the same man. Suddenly, both men merged to become one man that stood behind the Plasma members.

"If you cannot fulfill your duties…" he said.

"Th-this isn't… Ghestis when he's gathering followers… Or Ghetsis when he is trying to control people by tricking them with speeches!" the female member said the male member.

"Yeah…" he agreed. "This is Ghetsis when a plan has failed, and he is about to issue punishment…"

"At any rate, let's hurry up and apologize so that he forgives us!" said the female member before they both ran past us. As soon as they were gone, the image of the man named 'Ghetsis' disappeared and a bigger pink Pokémon that also floated appeared from around a corner. I grabbed my Pokédex and pointed it at the Pokémon.

_Musharna. The Drowsing Pokémon. With the mist from its forehead, it can create shapes of things from dreams it has eaten._

"So the man Ghetsis was an illusion then…" I thought aloud.

"Shaar!" the bigger Pokémon called to the smaller one.

Bianca turned to me frantically speaking. "What was that just now? That guy Ghetsis appeared all over the place and then he disappeared! That wasn't real right? Right?! … Could it have been a dream?"

"That Pokémon…" I uttered softly, pointing to Musharna.

"Oh!" said Fennel approaching us. "I couldn't wait, so I came myself!" She said cheerfully before locking her eyes on me. "Oh my Arceus… What happened?!"

"There were these big meanies! And they were hurting the Pokémon and Touko stopped them, but…" Bianca explained.

"… Is that Musharna?!" was all Fennel said. Bianca and I exchanged looks before returning our attention to the Pokémon.

"Musha?" said the bigger one.

"Munii" replied the smaller one before they both vanished.

"Look at that! They left behind some Dream Mist!" said Fennel while running to collect it. "Stop by my house later, okay you two?" she said before running back home.

"I'm going to go get patched up" I announced.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with?" asked Bianca with a worried expression.

"I'll be okay. I promise I'll call you if anything goes wrong"

"Okay! I'll be here if you need anything! I want to catch a Munna like the one you saved…"

"Good luck" I said before exiting through the hole in the wall. I looked down at myself. Dried blood covered my arms and my legs. Surely if I were to walk into the Pokémon Center like this I would give at least one person a heart attack.

"Oshawott!" I called. Nothing happened. I reached for his pokéball and hit the center button. My Pokémon stood in front of me, looking confused. "Oh. That's right. You're not an Oshawott anymore…" I said before pulling out my Pokédex. I pointed it at my new Pokémon.

_Dewott. The Discipline Pokémon. Strict training is how it learns its flowing double-scalchop technique._

"Alrighty then… Dewott, can you help me wash this stuff off?"

"Dew-wott!" he said before lightly spraying my arms and legs with water. Once I was mostly clean, I returned him to his pokéball and headed towards the Pokémon Center. I first healed my Pokémon, all except Patrat. I figured he would have to see a specialist. Once my others had healed, I talked to Nurse Joy.

"Nurse Joy, here is my last one… He was savagely attacked by another Trainer's Pokémon… Is there any hope?" I asked.

"Oh dear… Audino! Get me a stretcher for a small Scout Pokémon stat!" she called. Moments later, my heavily abused Patrat was brought to the emergency care unit. Nurse joy then turned to me. "Tell me exactly what happened. Now!" she said calmly, yet her voice had a darkness to it that made me swallow nervously.

"Well…" I told her about Team Plasma, and the Munna, and the battle. After giving me a closer look, she was able to see all of the scratches and bite wounds I had from Purrloin.

"Oh my… You need medical attention right away! Go right through there! Audino! Help this woman!" she said to another Audino. I let the pink, squishy Pokémon guide me to a back room to get bandaged up.

"Do you mind?" I asked the Pokémon while holding up my Pokédex. It smiled and nodded. Once I had permission, I scanned it.

_Audino. The Hearing Pokémon. Its auditory sense is astounding. It has a radar-like ability to understand its surroundings through slight sounds. Using the feelers on its ears, it can tell how someone is feeling or when an egg might hatch._

"Thanks" I said while the Pokémon continued to bandage me. Once I was all set I immediately returned to the front desk and asked Nurse Joy about Patrat.

"We want to keep him overnight for observation, but we believe that he should pull through" she said. I sighed in relief as I sunk down into one of the couches. I gave in to my urge to cry, letting the tears fall from my eyes like a waterfall.

"Excuse me. Can I ask why you're so upset?" someone said. I looked up to see a boy about my age, with brown hair and eyes, a red cap and a blue jacket. I tried to respond, but my voice came out all strained and incomprehensible. I quickly covered my mouth with both hands due to embarrassment. "Whoa, take it easy. You don't have to tell me. I'm Touya" he said while sitting next to me on the couch.

"…Touko…" I croaked out.

"Nice to meet you. So, what happened? Are you alright?" he boy named Touya asked.

I nodded. "I tried to stop some people from abusing a Pokémon. One of them sent out a Purrloin that was… trained to kill…" a shudder went through me at the thought. "They hurt my Patrat pretty bad, and I got hurt trying to protect him…"

"I see… did you happen to get any names?"

"Not exactly… They said they were members of an organization that were working to liberate Pokémon… Team Plasma" I practically spit out their name. He looked as though he wanted to say something before

"Miss Touko!" cried Nurse Joy suddenly. I looked to the kind boy who sat next to me.

"I'm sorry! I have to go! Thanks for asking me what was wrong" I said while springing off of the couch and into the back room by Nurse Joy.

"What? What is it?!" I asked like a mad-woman.

"Patrat's awake! I'll give you two a moment…" she said exiting the room. I quickly rushed to the bedside of my injured Pokémon.

"Hey little guy… You did great… You kicked some serious Plasma ass…" I said softly.

"Skree?"

"Mmhm. Thank you for listening to me too… did you do that because I have a badge now?"

"Skree" it said while slightly moving its head from side to side.

"Is it because the situation was serious?". I was met with the same response. "Is it because you didn't want to be taken away from me.

"Skree!" he said with a little nod. I smiled and lightly held onto one paw. "Thank you…" I said, letting a tear slip down my face. He squeezed one of my fingers before closing his eyes.

BEEEEP

I looked up at the monitor that I hadn't noticed before to see that it was in a straight line.

"Help! Help! Somebody help me!" I shouted. Two Audino came rushing in. One began examining Patrat while the other led me back outside. It sat me down on the couch and stayed with me. It rubbed my back lightly as I cried, trying to sooth me. After what felt like hours later, Nurse Joy approached me with a grim expression.

"Miss Touko…" she said sadly. My heart plummeted as I realized what she was going to say.

"C-can I-I… b-bury h-him?" I asked.

"Of course." She said. The Audino that waited with me left with Nurse Joy and came back minutes later holding a basket. I thanked the Pokémon before taking it and walking out of the Pokémon Center. I knew exactly where to bury the little Scout Pokémon. I found my way back into the Dreamyard. I walked through the broken building to find a bunch of shorter grass. I asked Dewott to soften the ground with some water before beginning to dig with my hands. Dewott stayed and helped me, and soon a small grave was dug for Patrat. I carefully lowered the basket into the grave before covering it up with dirt. Once the grave was completely re-covered, I called out all of my Pokémon to say their goodbyes. Tears slipped down my face as I found a slab of stone and began to write on it. I placed the stone on top of the grave as a makeshift tombstone. It read:

_Here's lies the world's bravest Patrat. He fought valiantly to prevent Team Plasma from committing Pokémon abuse. He will be missed dearly. –TW_

After the burial of Patrat, I returned all of my Pokémon to their pokéballs and went back to the Pokémon Center. I got a room and stayed up all night thinking about my fallen friend. My other Pokémon had stayed up with me as long as they could, but all fell asleep. I prayed to Arceus for Patrat's safe travel into a better place.


	6. Round 2

I do use quotes and actual in-game events from Pokémon White in this story.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon

* * *

><p>I left the Pokémon Center as quietly as I could, trying not to wake my sleeping Pokémon. I had only grabbed my room key and Xtransceiver. I walked out of the Pokémon Center and headed towards Fennel's house. I realized late last night that I had forgotten to visit her. I knocked on her door, which opened almost immediately after I touched it.<p>

"Touko! I was wondering if you'd show up!" said Fennel excitedly. I guessed that she was a morning person. "Come on in! I want to show you something!" she said while stepping aside so that I could enter the house. "Go upstairs!" she commanded. I did and waited for her to follow. "Thanks to you, I got some Dream Mist! Now I can sync the dreams of various Trainers together! As a token of my appreciation, I'd like to give you this C-Gear!" she said installing something onto my Xtransceiver. "C-Gear allows you to interact with different Trainers all over the world! I'll let you figure out how to work it on your own!" she said before turning to her papers.

"…Thanks…" I said quietly. I said goodbye before leaving, and heading back to the Pokémon Center to retrieve my stuff and Pokémon. They were still asleep, so I put them back in their pokéballs. After returning the room key to Nurse Joy, I walked out of the Pokémon Center and saw the boy with the red hat, Touya. He noticed me too, and walked over.

"Hey, Touko" he greeted with a smile. I returned his greeting with a small wave. "How's Patrat doing?" I inhaled sharply at the mention of my former Pokémon. I watched as his expression immediately changed from a happy, friendly one, to one of horrified realization. "Touko… I'm so sorry… I didn't know…" he said while taking my hand in his. I stared at it a few moments before tearing up. I wiped my eyes with my free hand. I stiffened when I felt Touya embrace me. After all, I did barely know this boy. I pushed him away lightly, leaving him a bit red. "Sorry… I don't know what I was thinking" he said sheepishly.

"It's okay… I'm going on to the next town. See you around?"

"I hope so" he replied with a small smile. I got maybe ten feet away before feeling someone grab my wrist. I looked back to see Touya eyes wide. "S-sorry! I tried calling your name… Guess you didn't hear me. Anyway, I was going to say that we should register each other in our Xtransceivers"

"Good idea" I said while turning towards him. I gave him mine and he gave me his.

After exchanging information, he said "If you ever need anyone to talk to, I'm always available."

"Thanks" I said with a small, but genuine, smile as I started back on my journey. I headed east, walking through a small topiary garden that had hedges shaped like Pokémon. I was stopped momentarily by an old man, but after showing him that I had Striation City's Gym Badge he let me through. I walked north and found two buildings. They were both Daycares; one for Pokémon and one for people. I left my Purrloin with the Daycare couple, and battled a few kids that were at the daycare. I was at a T- shaped road when I heard Cheren say my name.

"Touko! Stop! We both have a Trio Badge now, so let's see which of us is stronger!" he said. He threw out his Snivy while I threw out my Lillipup.

"Take Down!"

"Leaf Tornado!"

I watched Lillipup as a storm of leaves came hurtling straight for him. He burst through the leaves and knocked into Snivy. It was a pretty solid hit, but Lillipup had gotten hurt from the recall. Not to mention he had small scratches on him from where the razor-sharp leave cut him.

"Bite!" I commanded.

"Growth!"

Just as my Pokémon bit Cheren's, it grew in size and easily shook Lillipup off. My puppy Pokémon skid back a few feet before standing up.

"Finish with a Tackle!"

"Vine Whip!"

"Watch those vines!" I warned. I watched Lillipup approach Snivy with gaining speed. Just before Lillipup made contact with Snivy however, two vines grabbed Lillipup and threw him into the air. The puppy Pokémon yelped in surprise as it soared threw the air. He landed hard on the ground. Slowly, he stood up. He took one step forward. Then another. Then he began to charge the Snivy. He slammed into it with another Take Down attack. Both Pokémon fell after the initial impact, knocked unconscious.

"Return!" both Cheren and I called to our Pokémon.

"Purrloin!"

"Dewott!"

"Dewott? When did it evolve?" asked Cheren slightly incredulous.

"During my Gym Battle. Razor Shell!"

"Pursuit!"

Dewott was much faster than the purple cat Pokémon. It made one slash in the shape of an 'X' across the Pokémon's forehead. The Purrloin cried out in pain, but retaliated with its own attack. Pursuit did more damage than I would have liked for it to do, but it wasn't too bad.

"Water Gun, then another Razor Shell!"

My Pokémon didn't give Cheren any time to command his own as it swiftly disoriented Purrloin with Water Gun before cutting it once more with Razor Shell. The Devious Pokémon swayed and stumbled a bit before falling over.

"Return" said Cheren to his Pokémon.

"Great job, Dewott! Return!" I praised.

"It doesn't make sense! We have the same number of Gym Badges, so we should have equal strength!" said Cheren.

"OUT OF THE WAY!" I heard as two people ran past Cheren and I, shoving us both aside.

"What was that about?" asked Cheren with an unpleasant look on his face. We turned around when we heard the sound of someone running up the road.

"Bianca?" I thought aloud.

"Why are you running?" asked Cheren.

"Where were those people headed?" She asked. To her left was a young girl.

"That way, but… Why are you running?"

"They're so fast!" Bianca exclaimed.

"Miss... Oh… My Pokémon?" the small girl said, addressing Bianca.

"It'll be okay. It'll be okay. Don't cry." Bianca said to the little girl.

"Bianca, what's going on" I asked.

"Why were you running?" asked Cheren for the third time.

"You have to hear this! Those people stole this little girl's Pokémon!" Bianca exclaimed.

"You should have said that sooner!" reprimanded Cheren. He then turned to me. "Touko, we're going to get that Pokémon back." He said coolly. "Bianca! Please stay by this girl's side." He ran off after saying that, running in the direction of the thieves. I ran after him, finding him stopped in front of a cave.

"You're Pokémon's HP is fine, right?" he asked.

"I'll be right back!" I said, running in the direction of the Daycare. I healed my Pokémon and took back my Purrloin. I met Cheren outside of the cave again. "Ready" I said. I followed him into the small cave, seeing two figures in front of us. Cheren stepped up to them first. As my eyes adjusted to the dim lighting, I caught a flash of a symbol. It was the crest of Team Plasma. I felt my blood begin to boil as I stood to stand beside Cheren.

"That bothersome child cannot use a Pokémon to its full potential. Doesn't that make the Pokémon sad?" said one of the Plasma members.

"It's the same thing for all of your Pokémon, so hand them over to us now! Better yet… I'll just take them!" said the other. The second member threw out a Patrat.

"Purrloin!" I called while tossing out my own Pokémon. It had gained a level or two since being at the Daycare.

"Leer!"

"Pursuit!"

My Pokémon didn't so much as flinch when the foe Patrat gave it a sinister glare. It charged the Patrat and attacked.

"Great! Now, Fury Swipes!"

Purrloin was able to successfully claw at the Patrat five times before the Scout Pokémon fainted.

"Wha?! How could we lose when we have right on our side?!" cried the Team Plasma member I had beaten.

"Wow Touko… You battled like nothing I have ever seen…" Cheren complimented, looking at me with wide eyes. "Now let's return that girls Pokémon."

"You don't need to return that Pokémon!" shouted two more Team Plasma members, coming out from a deeper part of the cave.

"Not only do you fail to understand, did you actually got in our way, to boot." said the new member that was on my right.

"There's two of you, and two of us. We'll show you our combined power and show you that we are right!" said the one to my left.

"So there were more of them…" remarked Cheren. "Still, why are Pokémon robbers acting so self-righteous?" He turned to me. "Touko! We've been friends our entire lives! We've got each other's backs when it counts! Let's show them how it's done!"

"Right! Lillipup!"

I sent out my Lillipup and Cheren sent out his Snivy. The Team Plasma members both sent out Patrats.

"Lillipup! Bite!"

"Snivy! Leaf Tornado!"

Both of our Pokémon launched their attacks at the same time. I took the one across from me, while Cheren took the one across from him, in case they tried to fight dirty. Lillipup latched on to the Patrat and didn't let go until the enemy Pokémon had swirled eyes. I looked over to see Cheren still battling him Patrat.

"Touko! Help me out!"

"Lillipup! Use Take Down on Patrat!"

The puppy Pokémon did as told, knocking the Patrat into the cave wall behind it.

"Nice Crit!" said Cheren.

"Crit?"

"Critical hit" he said with a smirk. I nodded in understanding before facing the Plasma members.

"I can't believe we lost to some kids!" cried one member.

"Wha?! How could we lose?!" cried the other.

"In order to liberate Pokémon from foolish people, we will take their Pokémon!" said one of the first Team Plasma members.

"Whatever. What a waste of time…" said Cheren.

"What reason could possibly justify stealing Pokémon from people?" I asked venomously.

"Pokémon Trainers like you are making Pokémon suffer…"

"What do you mean, Trainers are making Pokémon suffer? I don't get that at all!" said Cheren.

"We'll give you back the Pokémon for now… One of the members said, reluctantly handing Cheren a pokéball. "But be aware of how this Pokémon suffers from being used by people."

"Someday, open your eyes to your own complicity." said another. With that, they all left, leaving just Cheren and I in the cave.

"Trainers bring out their Pokémon's strength. Pokémon believe in their Trainers and respond to that. I don't understand what about that makes Pokémon suffer!" Cheren raged. He shook his head and turned to me. "I'll return the Pokémon" he said before leaving the cave. I followed suit, eager to see the little girl reunited with her Pokémon.

"Touko! Thank you so much! The two of you got her Pokémon back!" squealed Bianca. "I'm lucky to have friends like you two!"

"Thank you Miss! Please take these as a thank-you present!" said the little girl while handing me some Heal balls.

"Wow! Those are Heal balls! They completely heal the captured Pokémon on the spot! How sweet of you!" said Bianca. "I'm going to walk this girl home, Touko! See ya later!" I watched them leave in the direction of the Daycare before heading down the part of the road I hadn't yet visited. I battle a boy before continuing on to see Cheren staring at a pile of… dark grass?

"Touko! This tall dark grass over here hides stronger Pokémon! Every now and again, two Pokémon will pop out at the same time too." He explained. "In other words, you have to be careful in the darker grass."

"Wow. Thanks Cheren!" I said.

He nodded his head in acknowledgement. "I'm heading to Nacrene City" he added before continuing down the road. I stepped into the darker grass and walked around a bit. No Pokémon came to greet me, leaving me a little disappointed. As I was exiting the grass, I heard some grass rustle. I turned around and say a zebra-like Pokémon. I quickly took out my Pokédex and scanned it.

_Blitzle. The Electrified Pokémon. When thunderclouds cover the sky, it will appear. It can catch lightning with its mane and store the electricity.__Its mane shines when it discharges electricity. They use the frequency and rhythm of these flashes to communicate._

I looked up at the sky to see that it indeed had become cloudy outside.

"Purrloin! Fury swipes!" I ordered.

My Pokémon lunged at the Blitzle, scratching it several times. The Blitzle retaliated with a Shock Wave that ended up paralyzing my Pokémon.

"Pursuit!" I called out to no avail. My Pokémon was frozen, while the Blitzle attacked with Shock wave once more. My Purrloin fainted, unable to battle any longer. "Return!"

"Lillipup! Bite!" The puppy Pokémon obeyed, getting a good attack before getting hit by Shock Wave.

"Pokéball, go!" I yelled while throwing one of the heal balls. It shook once before opening. The Blitzle began charging power with Charge. I threw another pokéball. It shook twice this time before opening. The Blitzle paralyzed Lillipup with Thunder Wave. I threw my last heal ball and heard my heart beat to the tandem of the pokéball. One. Boom boom. Two. Boom boom. Three. Boom boom… Click! I jumped for joy at my newly caught friend. After picking up Blitzle's pokéball, a crash of thunder sounded, and rain began to pour from the sky. I quickly hurried across a small bridge to reach the next gate. I hurried inside, tracking water in with me. The gate guide said nothing about it, so I just sat down in one of the empty chairs. I knew that the next town was right through the other set of doors, but the rain had increased within the last few minutes. Thunder and lightning rumbled and lit up the sky. I didn't know how long the storm would take, so I decided to call someone.

"Hi Mom"

"Hi dear! Where are you?"

"I'm in the gate between Route 3 and Nacrene City. There's a really bad storm outside, so I'm waiting it out"

"How smart of you! So, has anything interesting happened since I last saw you?"

"Well…"

"Yes?". I felt my eyes begin to tear up. "Touko, what's wrong?"

""I-I… I lost a Pokémon Mom…"

"I'm sure you'll find him soon dear-"

"No Mom… for good…"

"Oh, honey… I'm so sorry to hear that. How'd it happen?"

"I…" I relayed the story to my mother about Team Plasma.

"Oh my… Touko, they sound dangerous. Avoid them whenever possible, dear. I don't want to see you get hurt."

"T-thanks M-mom. I'll t-try"

"You're welcome dear. I have to go now sweetie! Sorry for the bad timing! Take care! I love you!"

"Love you too…" I said softly before hanging up. I looked outside to see that the weather still hadn't cleared up. Sighing, I wiped my eyes with my hands and dialed another number. It rang twice before its owner picked up.

"Hello? Touko?" he said.

"Hi Touya" I said wearily.

"Good to hear from you! To be honest, I didn't think you'd call so soon."

"I needed someone to talk to… I'm caught up in a storm right now." His face turned serious.

"Are you okay? Do you want me to come by you?"

I shook my head 'no'. "I don't want to be a burden. I just want to talk."

"Alright. What about?"

"Anything… I'm not picky…"

"Hmm. How about we play 20 questions?"

"Okay"

"Actually, I'm a little pressed for time at the moment. How about we each ask each other five questions?"

"Sounds fair"

"Alright. Do you mind if I go first?"

"Go ahead"

"Alright… What's your hometown?"

"Nuvema Town"

"What a coincidence! Me too!"

I frowned. "I don't remember you ever living there"

"I moved when I was really young. Anyway, next question! Who was your first Pokémon?"

"Oshawott."

"I see… What do you want to be when you get older?"

"I honestly have no idea…"

"That's fair. You've got time. Favorite food?"

"Don't have one. Except maybe pizza…"

"If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would you go?"

"A place I could visit Patrat" I replied without thinking. I quickly covered my hand with my mouth. Touya stared back with a blank expression.

"Um… Touko, are you alright?"

"Whoops! I have another call! Talk to you later!"

"Wai-" Click. I had hung up on him. I looked outside to see that it had somewhat cleared up. I grabbed my bag and headed through the doors, towards the Pokémon Center.


	7. Nacrene City: Pokécenter Peril!

This chapter is made up of events that (mostly) did not happen in the game at all.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon

* * *

><p>I never made it to the Pokémon Center because I ran into Cheren.<p>

"Hey, come with me a sec" he said. I followed, despite getting wet from the rain. We walked west for a while before he suddenly stopped, making me almost walk into him.

"If you keep going this way there's a Pokémon Center" he said. "Also, use these if you want" he said, handing me some berries. "Those are Chesto berries; give one to your Pokémon to hold on to if you want. If your Pokémon ever falls asleep, it will wake it up immediately"

"Thanks Cheren." I said transferring the berries to my bag.

"Another thing. Nacrene City's Gym Leader uses Normal types. If you have a Fighting type Pokémon, it may give you a big advantage." He said before running off. I cursed him a bit for making me talk in the rain. I was soaked. Why couldn't we have talked inside? Nonetheless, I entered the Pokémon center and gave my Pokémon to Nurse Joy. I also asked for a towel so I wouldn't get everything wet.

"I'll do you one better" she said while handing me my Pokémon back. She walked around the counter and motioned for me to follow her.

"There are the Nurses' quarters. You can find towels and a fresh uniform in here" she explained while opening a room for me.

"T-thank you" I said before entering. It was a small room, with one bed and a closet. There was also another door that led to a small bathroom. I stripped out of my wet clothing and took a hot shower. I noticed while showering how dirty my hair was from all of the rain and sweat. After thoroughly washing my hair, I stepped out of the shower and into a fresh Nurse's uniform. I left my wet clothes to dry by the heater. I was about to put my shoes on when I noticed how filthy they were. I quickly washed them in the sink and set them to dry next to my clothes. I wasn't issued a pair of Nurse's shoes, so I resorted to taking my slightly damp boots out of my bag and putting them on. I put my hair in a wet ponytail before walking out of the Nurses' quarters.

"My, now don't you look cute! I will have to ask you to stay within the Pokémon Center for as long as you borrow that uniform, however."

"It's no problem. Do you need help with anything?"

"Hm… Would it be too much of a bother if I asked you to organize the back closet?"

"Not at all!"

"Alright then. Audino! Please show this woman to the closet" Moments later the hearing Pokémon appeared and took my hand. It started pulling me towards the closet. I followed, eager to at least have something to do while I waited. I realized once I opened the closet door why it was in desperate need of organization. Medical supplies were thrown across various shelves in no particular order.

"Phewww….." I whistled. "Hey, Audino. Would it be okay if I had my Pokémon help me clean this?" I asked the pink Pokémon.

"Au, Diii!" it replied cheerfully.

"Thank you!" I said before pulling out Dewott's, Purrloin's, and Lillipup's pokéballs. I told them the game plan as they materialized. "Alright, so, you two get the lower shelves, and Dewott, you take the very top, please"

"Wot!"

"Loi!"

"Ruff!"

I smiled as the four of us got to work. The first thing we did was empty all of the shelves, using the surrounding floor space to place the items. Once the shelves were cleared, we sorted all of the items. It ranged from towels, to vitamins, to potions, to bandages, etc., etc. Then came time for restocking shelves. We had done it pretty quickly, and I had literally just finished placing a box of bandages on a shelf when an alarm sounded.

CODE BLUE! CODE BLUE! ALL NURSE JOYS PLEASE REPORT FOR DUTY!

My Pokémon and I flattened up against the closet as about 5 Nurse Joys passed us. They all grabbed surgical gear and ran alongside the gurneys of injured Pokémon. I put the last few boxes on the shelves, and recalled my Pokémon so they wouldn't get trampled. The Pokémon Center was in complete disarray. The lobby was full of trainers and their injured Pokémon. I approached a young boy, who was crying, cautiously.

"Hello, I'm Touko. Can you tell me what happened, please?" He sniffed a few times before turning his eyes to mine.

"There was a big accident near the forest! A lot of trainers and Pokémon got hurt!"

"Are you okay? What's your name, sweetie?" I pressed as I crouched to his level.

"I'm okay" he sniffed again. "I'm Jonah"

"That's good! Do you have any hurt Pokémon?"

"Nu-uh"

"That's good! I have to go for now. If you need anything, just yell 'Touko!'"

"Okay!" said Jonah. I looked around the room at the other injured. The Pokémon Mart was being overrun by trainers trying to but healing items. There were also people rushing the counters, making me feel bad for the Nurse who was on duty. I felt like I should do _something_… but what? That's it! I quickly made my way back to the room my stuff resided in. I grabbed all of the medical supplies I had bought for my journey. I left my pokéballs in the room before heading back to the lobby. It was still as crazy as when I had left. I quickly went next to the Nurse Joy at the front desk.

"Is there a microphone anywhere? I think I can help"

"Audino! Show her how to use the PA system!" said the nurse. An Audino came from nowhere and handed me a mic. I pushed the small button and tapped it with my finger to make sure it worked.

"Excuse me!" came my booming voice. It surprised me how loud I sounded. "Ahem. If I could have everyone make a single file line, some healing items will be distributed. Those closest to the accident will be treated first. There are only a few of us, and I promise we will give it all we've got to make your Pokémon healthy again" Everyone stayed frozen and silent a moment while staring at me. I kept the same serious expression while enduring their stares. I watched one by one as people started to make one line, having the most critical cases in the front. I breathed a sigh of relief before placing the mic back on the desk. I can't believe it actually worked. I left behind the counter and began distributing healing items from my bag as the Nurses took other patients. I wouldn't have had enough for everyone if the Pokémon Mart hadn't pitched in. Then I walked back and forth between trainers and Pokémon, making sure everything was okay. Fatigue finally caught up to me as the sky began to darken, and my legs collapsed beneath me. A few people helped me up, and I quickly walked over to a nearby bench before they could give out again. I laid my now empty bag of medicines in my lap and took a few deep breaths. Boy, who knew being a Nurse was so hard? I closed my eyes and let my head tilt backwards. That was, until I felt a tug on my uniform.

"Umm… Touko?" said Jonah hesitantly.

"What is it?" I asked, a little worried by his expression.

"I think the Nurses need help in the back. I thought I should tell you…"

"Thanks, Jonah. I'll be right there" I said while reluctantly getting up. I went near the surgical area, and grimaced upon entering. Dozens of injured Pokémon laid in beds adjacent to one another. "Do you need any help back here?" I asked a Nurse walking briskly.

"Get me bandages and potions! Bring many!" she ordered. I quickly walked over to the newly organized closet and emptied the requested contents into my bag. I quickly found the Nurse who I had spoken to. "Come with me!"

I followed, as she made room for more Pokémon to be treated. My stomach churned uneasily at the sight of all the injured Pokémon. I was shaken from my horrified daze by the Nurse I was with.

"Stay with me!" she said sternly to me. I quickly nodded before beginning to hand her the supplies. "Grab some gloves and a mask. We need your help" she ordered. I sound the gloves and masks on a nearby wall, supported by a small table. I quickly slipped them on before hurrying back over to the nurse.

"Place your hands here and apply pressure" the nurse said while guiding my hands towards an injured Pokémon. It was a Patrat. I swallowed thickly as I did as told before turning my head away to look anywhere but the Patrat.

_Don't cry. Don't cry._

"All done. Let's move on" said the nurse. I quickly let go of the injured Patrat as we moved from one Pokémon to the other. It still took until the sun began to rise before we were finished treating all of the injured Pokémon; despite having all six nurses and myself working. I peeled off my mask and gloves as I made my way back to the lobby. The nurses had sent everyone home around eleven.

"What time is it?" I asked with a yawn to the Nurse Joy behind the counter.

"3:07" she returned with a yawn of her own. I sat on a nearby couch and closed my eyes. Moments later, I once again felt a small tug on the skirt of my uniform.

"Hi Jonah" I said upon looking at the small boy in front of me.

"Thank you very much Touko. You were really brave"

I gave a small smile. "It's no big deal"

"What's no big deal, Miss Touko?" asked the Nurse Joy behind the counter.

"Oh, I was just talking to someone" I said, turning my head towards her.

"Who?" she inquired with a frown.

I frowned myself. "A boy named Jonah, he's right-" my heart stopped as I looked right where Jonah had been standing. I tentatively placed a hand in the air, and swirled it around. There was nothing but air.

I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion as Nurse Joy said "I think you need some rest, dear. Go get some sleep" I silently nodded, still ogling the space where Jonah had been. He sounded so real… And the tug on my skirt was definitely real… I walked robotically back to my room, mouth ajar as I wracked my brain for any logical possibility. I got undressed and showered, before getting redressed and getting into my bed, as if my body was on autopilot. Even when in bed, I lay there with wide eyes, and the same dumb expression on my face.

I shook my head, and relaxed my face. "She's right, I _do_ need sleep" I grumbled to myself before turning over and closing my eyes.


	8. Lenora & the Nacrene City Museum

_She was there. The girl you want to befriend._

"Really?" I said surprised, doubt overshadowing my tone. I frowned at my reaction. Of course she was there. Zorua had no reason to lie. "What was she doing there?"

_She seemed to be helping the injured Pokémon. She wore a uniform like those Nurses._

"How… peculiar…" I uttered as my brows furrowed in confusion. Of course I had heard about the accident that had rendered many Pokémon injured. I had been in outskirts of the forest when it had happened.

_Yup! I even talked with her…_

"You what?" I said with astonishment, snatching me out of my gaze.

_She seems… nice… but…_

I patted my friend reassuringly on the head. "She'll show her true colors soon enough" I said, beginning to stroke his fur. I knew he, as well as all of my other friends, were wary of people. People were cruel and only thought of Pokémon as toys that they could discard of easily once they considered them 'broken'.

* * *

><p>"Thank you for all of your help!" I said cheerily to the desk Nurse after my long needed rest. I woke up around 4:00 PM then changed before getting my own Pokémon healed. I was going to challenge Lenora today.<p>

"Oh, Miss Touko, it's us who should be thanking you! Without you, I don't know what would've happened."

"T-thanks" I said sheepishly while scratching the back of my head.

"You could be a great Nurse one day. Maybe even a doctor" the Nurse complimented.

"Heh heh. Gee, I never thought of that… I have to go. See you later!" I said. After my farewell with the Nurse, I stopped towards the shop. "What's the damage?" I asked, looking at all of the empty shelves.

"We are completely out of stock… My partner went to Castelia City to get some more"

"Good luck!" I said before exiting the Pokémon Center. The sun was just beginning to set, which felt weird seeing as I had just woken up. From what I understood, the Gym stood in the northern part of town. I took a left onto a sidewalk, then another left onto another one. To my right I saw a few houses, a café, and a very large building. I approached the sign next to the large building which read:

_Nacrene City Pokémon Gym_

_Leader: Lenora_

_An Archeologist with a Backbone_

So. This Gym also doubled as a museum… interesting. I walked toward the entrance and opened the door to almost have someone walk into me.

"Hey!-" I started to complain, but cut off when I saw who it was. "N-N?"

"I… want to see things no one can see." He began while stepping towards me, forcing me to step backwards down the steps of the museum. "The truths of Pokémon inside Pokéballs. The ideals of how Trainers should be. And a future where Pokémon have become perfect…" he said as if in a daze. I took into account how close he was to me. Emerald eyes boring into my skull. He stood on the last step of the museum, making him even taller than before. I had to lean my head at an almost painful angle just to look up at him. It was silent a moment. Then, suddenly "Do you feel the same?"

"Wah! I- uh… I… guess" I stammered out awkwardly.

He angled his head to the side slightly. "Is that so? I think my friends and I should test you to see if you can see this future, too." He said while reaching for a pokéball, I quickly grabbed one of my own.

"Pidove!"

"Lillipup!" I called. Then I remembered I had never seen this Pokémon before. "May I?" I asked while holding up my Pokédex.

"Be my guest" he said politely.

_Pidove. The Tiny Pigeon Pokémon. These Pokémon live in cities. They are accustomed to people. Flocks often gather in parks and plazas. Each follows its Trainer's orders as best it can, but they sometimes fail to understand complicated commands._

"Ladies first" said N calmly. For a moment, my mind ran blank. Any notion of battling was erased from my mind. "Touko?"

Face getting hot, I shot out the first attack I could think of "Bite!"

My Lillipup charged at the bird, who easily dodged the attack and slapped my Lillipup with its wing. Was that wing attack? N hadn't said anything…

"Friend! Wing attack!" N commanded.

"Dodge, then Take Down!" I said panicked. Lillipup barely escaped the second wing attack before swiftly turning and crashing into the Pidove. It squawked out in pain while rolling towards its… er… What was N anyway? He said he was a Trainer… but he doesn't seem to like battling…

"Relp!" The call of my Lillipup snapped my drifting focus back to the battle. Pidove was starting to attack.

"Wait until it gets close, and then use Bite!" The Puppy Pokémon did as told, fainting the bird with its second attack.

"Tympole!"

I didn't ask before scanning the Pokémon with my Pokédex this time.

_Tympole. The Tadpole Pokémon. By vibrating its cheeks, it emits sound waves imperceptible to humans. It uses the rhythm of these sounds to talk._

"Bite!" As Lillipup began to draw close, N's Tympole used mud slap, getting mud directly into the Puppy Pokémon's eyes. Lillipup missed his attack, and the Tympole struck again. My Lillipup yelped in pain.

"Lillipup, come back!" I said, calling him back before he had the chance to faint. "Dewott!"

"…" I thought I heard N mutter something.

"Y-yes?"

"Sorry. It's nothing. Please continue"

"Razor Shell twice!" I commanded. Dewott charged the tadpole Pokémon, not even needing to get a second hit in. After the first, N's fainted.

"Timburr"

_Timburr. The Muscular Pokémon. These Pokémon appear at building sites and help out with construction. They always carry squared logs.__It fights by swinging a piece of lumber around. It is close to evolving when it can handle the lumber without difficulty._

"Razor Shell again!" Dewott dashed forward, shells blazing, but didn't make contact. The Timburr stopped the attack with its piece of wood. It then swung at Dewott with the wood. It would have hit, had Dewott not automatically dodged it.

"Tackle!"

"Razor Shell!"

The two Pokémon collided, creating a dust cloud which was hard to see through. Once the area cleared, both Pokémon stood on one knee, staring the other down. After a few more tension-filled moments, the Timburr doubled over in pain, leaving swirls in its eyes.

"I cannot see the future yet… The world is still to be determined…"

"I don't think that's quite up to you N…" I said slowly, not quite sure what he meant.

"Right now, my friends aren't strong enough to save all Pokémon. Maybe I can't solve the equation that will change the world. "

"N, are you alrigh-"

"So, I need power…" he continued as if I hadn't said anything at all. "Power enough to make anyone agree with me."

He then walked past me, towards the forest, leaving me in a bewildered state. What was all the talk about? I tried to shrug it off as I headed back over to the Pokémon Center.

"Anything new?" I asked the shop clerk who gave a small shake of his head. Man, where was Cheren when you needed him…

After healing my Pokémon, I entered the museum/gym with no interruption. I followed the blue checkered carpet until I saw a man standing in front of a massive dragon-looking skeleton.

"Wow! Every time I look at this skeleton, I'm… fascinated" I heard him say as I drew nearer. He must have heard me coming, because he swiftly turned in my direction saying "Welcome! I'm Hawes, the assistant director. Since you were kind enough to visit, I'll give you a tour of the museum". He stepped aside so that I could see the skeleton better. I gaped up in awe as he commenced with the tour. "This skeleton is of a Dragon-type Pokémon. There's a theory that it had an accident while flying around the world, and so it became a fossil."

Then we headed towards the left and stopped in front of a strange rock. "This rock is amazing! It's a meteorite! It contains some kind of energy from space." We walked a little bit farther to stand in front of a black spherical stone. I looked skeptically at the rock. "Oh, this? It's an ordinary old stone. It was found near the desert, but other than the fact that it's old, it doesn't seem to have any value… We only display it because it's pretty to look at."

I stared at it a few seconds longer. It seemed to… move. Just the tiniest bit. I blinked at it a few times and nothing. It must have been a trick of the light…

"Moving on…" I heard Hawes say. I quickly caught up with him on a pair of stairs at the back of the museum. A wide doorway sat atop of it. "The Pokémon Gym is just beyond here" Hawes explained. "At the end of the Gym a very strong and kind Gym Leader is waiting. By the way, the Gym Leader Lenora happens to be my wife!"

"Thank you for the tour Hawes. I'm sure she'll be a challenge" I said before stepping through the door. I gasped aloud upon entering. I had never seen so many books in one room before. I was shook from my gaze by the Gym guide, Clyde, coming to greet me.

"A Pokémon Gym where a Leader waits for the challenger at the back of a museum… It has a great atmosphere, doesn't it? So… I will give this to you" he said as he handed me a Fresh Water. "All the trainers in this gym use Normal-type Pokémon. This is just between you and me… Normal-type Pokémon are weak against Fighting-type Pokémon. Around here, Fighting-type Pokémon show up around Pinwheel Forest. Now I'll explain about the Gym itself…" He continued talking, but his voice became a soft buzzing in my ear as I became mystified once again by the books. I wondered what different kinds of books lay here. There must be hundreds, maybe thousands… "You got all that?" Clyde asked. I nodded my head despite not hearing a word he said. He bid me good luck and I approached the first bookshelf in sight. I pulled out a book that contained a clue. I get it. I would have to guess where the next book would be and battle trainers along the way… Seemed easy enough…

* * *

><p>Turns out Normal-type Pokémon are tougher than they look. I got through the round of Trainers with only my Dewott surviving. I ran back to get healed before my big battle with Lenora. She would be hard to beat without a type advantage… Maybe I should check out that forest… Then again, what would I even be looking for? I didn't know any Fighting-type Pokémon… I pulled out my Pokédex while releasing a tired sigh. I looked at the Fighting-type search results, and was shocked to find one entry. That's right! I collected its data when I battled N. <em>N… <em>Thinking of the emerald-eyed mystery boy sent my thoughts in a totally different direction.

_What did he have to solve? And why? It certainly was nice to see him again… I wouldn't mind seeing a bit more of him… In more ways than one…_

"Miss Touko?" said Nurse Joy. I covered my flaming face with my hat and uttered a quick 'Thank you' as I flew like a Woobat out of hell. I cannot _believe_ I just thought that! I barely know the guy, let alone anything about him! I continued towards the Gym, a mini-battle raging in my head justifying whether or not thinking like that was even appropriate. I kept my head down as I walked quickly through the museum. I walked down the steps I had previously uncovered into a dark room with even more books surrounding a large wooden desk. In front of it stood Lenora.

"Welcome! The director of the Nacrene Museum and the Nacrene Gym's Leader is me! Lenora! Well then, challenger, I'm going to research how you battle with the Pokémon you so lovingly raised!"

"Herdier!"

"Lillipup!"

The Puppy Pokémon stared intently at its next evolution. I quickly scanned the Herdier with my Pokédex.

_Herdier. The Loyal Dog Pokémon. It loyally follows its Trainer's orders. For ages, they have helped Trainers raise Pokémon. It has black, cape-like fur that is very hard and decreases the amount of damage it receives._

"Leer!" said Lenora.

"Don't let it phase you! Take Down!" The Puppy Pokémon did as told; only slowing slightly due to the other dog's leer. The attack hit, not nearly doing as much damage as I wished it would. The recoil also was very hard on Lillipup, but he stood up easily, eager for more.

"Take down!"

"Dodge!"

It was too late. Herdier moved with lightning speed, crashing into my Lillipup and sending him flying. He lay still for a few moments before standing up shakily. Then he began to glow.

"No way…" I said under my breath as I watched him evolve.

"Congratulations. It looks like you've raised him well" praised Lenora.

"Alright, Herdier! Bite! Go for the head or tail!" I commanded, seeing as the darker part of its body was used as protection.

"Take Down!" I heard Lenora order. The two dog Pokémon collided, causing a lot of commotion and confusion amongst their Trainers. In the end, one Herdier stood over the other in triumph.

"Herdier, return!" I called to my fainted Pokémon. I had Dewott, Blitzle, and Purrloin left. "Purrloin! Assist!"

The purple cat Pokémon used Shock Wave as a result, easily paralyzing the foe. "Good! Now keep using it!" I called. Purrloin kept throwing various attacks until the Herdier fainted.

"Not bad. But I'm not finished yet! Watchog!"

Again, I scanned it with my Pokédex.

_Watchog. The Lookout Pokémon. They make the patterns on their bodies shine in order to threaten predators. Keen eyesight lets them see in the dark._

"Assist!"

"Retaliate!"

I watched in horror as my Purrloin barely got a hit in before the Watchog struck back tenfold, making it faint.

"Return! Blitzle!"

"Hypnosis!"

"Dodge then Thunder Wave!"

Blitzle barely moved out of the way before sending a paralyzing beam at the Watchog. It thankfully hit, giving me time to attack it.

"Keep using Shock Wave!"

The battle was pretty one sided, the Watchog often being too paralyzed to attack. However, as I was just about to end it…

"Retaliate!"

The Pokémon moved surprisingly fast for being fully paralyzed two seconds ago. It struck quickly, fainting my Blitzle in one powerful hit.

"Return!" I called. "It's all up to you now" I whispered to my Dewott before releasing him.

"Use Razor Shell, but be careful!"

Dewott approached the opposing Pokémon with blazing shells, striking again and again. After one particularly powerful hit, the Watchog fell in defeat.

"Hm. My theory about you was correct… You're more than just talented… You're motivated! I salute you!" she said. "Your fighting style is so enchanting. It is charming. You are a Pokémon Trainer worthy of receiving this Basic Badge!" She handed me a purple rectangular-shaped badge with gold framing. I quickly put it away in its proper spot in my case. "If you have two badges, traded Pokémon up to Lv. 30 will obey you. Here, I also want you to have this TM" she said while handing me the small silver disk. IT read TM67. "Retaliate does a lot more damage if an ally fainted in the turn before you use it! If you master the timing, you can defeat even strong opponents." I nodded and thanked her, and was on my way upstairs when…

"Deeeear!"


End file.
